How do you know who and what to trust in a post-truth world? In online environments where digital information can be misleading or untruthful, people can hide behind anonymous personas, and websites track and share your online behavior and personal data, establishing trust can be a challenge. While our connected world has led to wider participation, it has also been used to distribute false information and challenge our sense of personal privacy. Social media sites routinely collect your online information and may share it without you even knowing. When you click to approve the Terms of Service, you may have granted consent without realizing what you signed up for. In another example, you've probably noticed those annoying ads that follow you around after you click on a commercial product or site. When searching for something to purchase as a consumer, it is very common to see ads for that product or something similar as part of your online activity unless, of course, you're careful about your privacy settings, or used a search engine that doesn't track your online searching behavior. Considering some of the challenges of today's post-truth world. When social media is used to create and share false information, and commercial sites monitor your online behavior or share your data, it may seem daunting to build trust in communities that value multiple perspectives and viewpoints. A community may be defined as a group of individuals who share common viewpoints, interests, and goals. Communities require trust in order to work collaboratively toward the same goals, and to produce information that is authentic and reliable. In a community of trust, people rely on each other and know that their ideas will always be considered and respected as part of an ongoing and productive dialogue. Differences within a community of trust are valued as the group works constructively toward a common goal or objective. Some individuals have violated trust in online communities by posting or sharing false information. In one high profile case from 2005, the target of an online hoax fought back and made significant changes as a result. John Seigenthaler Sr., after learning that a false biography about him was posted by an anonymous user on Wikipedia, wrote an op-ed piece for USA Today that describe why the false entry was so personally and professionally offensive. As a well-respected journalist who was a strong voice for First Amendment rights, Mr. Seigenthaler effectively challenged the anonymous editorial format of Wikipedia. This incident led to changes at Wikipedia including a biographies of living persons policy and tightened controls over who can establish a new page. The Wikipedia leadership and community took responsibility for the technical and policy issues that made it possible for an anonymous user to create the hoax, rebuilding trust in this open resource while supporting and affirming the importance of user-generated content. Trust also impacts our experiences with social media sites and how our personal data is collected and used. Facebook was involved in a vast security breach of user data in advance of the 2016 presidential election. Cambridge Analytica, a data analytics firm, accessed the private information of more than 87 million users for political purposes without their knowledge or permission. This is one of the most significant violations of consumer data during the post-truth era and demonstrates the failure of Facebook to protect the data of millions of unsuspecting users who had trusted their platform to connect with friends. It shows that personal data is seen as a commodity by commercial platforms and is easily shared without the awareness of the participants. Facebook's role in allowing the distribution of false information is also problematic since we now know that 126 million Americans, which is one-third of the population, were exposed to Russian-linked fake news during the 2016 presidential election. Facebook sold 3,000 ads to Russian agents as part of this propaganda campaign. In addition, Twitter was used to disseminate 131,000 messages from the same source, and YouTube, a Google resource, published over 1,000 videos from the same Russian agency. Considering the many challenges of a post-truth world, think about what is needed to re-imagine and re-invent purposeful online communities. As a meta-literate learner, you have the potential to be a civic-minded contributor to social spaces who works to build trust with other participants in collaborative environments. The meta-literacy learning objectives support the ability to determine what kind of information can be trusted while building community in different social settings. Meta-literate learners critically assess information from all sources including dynamic content that circulates online. This objective recognizes information in multiple forms while emphasizing the need to evaluate where it came from and who authored it. As part of this process, meta-literate learners evaluate user-generated information in social media environments and differentiate between opinion and fact. This objective values the contributions from participants while analyzing whether someone is expressing their own view or sharing a factual statement. Since participation and responsibility are both essential to building trust, meta-literate learners participate conscientiously in collaborative environments and take responsibility for their participation. Both objectives required individuals to think carefully about the contributions they make and to participate responsibly in a variety of social settings. As much as you may want to trust the online platforms you use on a daily basis, you also need to bring a critical perspective to these environments. This means that meta-literate learners protect personal privacy and actively secure your online information. This objective requires careful attention to Terms of Service, decisions about consent, and awareness of platform policy regarding user data. This outcome is related to another one requiring you to critically adapt to and understand new technologies and the impact they have on learning. Your openness to try out new environments must be balanced with securing your own online information. As you think about your experiences with a post-truth society, explore the meta-literate learner objectives to develop actions that reinforce truthful and trusted communities.
